Morsi supporters, opponents hold dual protests in Egypt

Jul. 8, 2013
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An Egyptian military soldier stands guard near Cairo University, where supporters of Egypt's ousted President Mohammed Morsi have installed their camp in Giza, southwest of Cairo, Egypt, on Sunday. / Manu Brabo, AP

by Sarah Lynch, Special for USA TODAY

by Sarah Lynch, Special for USA TODAY

CAIRO - Rival protests erupted across the capital Sunday as Egypt's opposing political camps remain at odds over who should govern the country.

Backers of now-deposed president Mohamed Morsi gathered in Nasr City to insist he is the nation's legitimate leader because he was elected democratically. They are furious over what they view as a military coup and say they don't accept any of the military's recent decisions.

"We will not leave until Morsi comes back," said Mohammad Ibrahim, a pharmacist, who wants Morsi to be released from detention. "We believe in democracy of the West, and I came here because I voted for Morsi."

Crowds poured into the rally taking place outside a Cairo mosque as the sun set over the capital. Ibrahim had been there for more than a week with others who sleep in tents along the road where demonstrators gather.

"The people wanted Morsi, and voted for him," said Sayyed Al-Azab, an engineer, who came with his wife to the rally. Azab said he was not just demonstrating in support of Morsi, but to protect all votes in elections since the country rose up against autocrat Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

On Wednesday, Egypt's army chief Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi announced the nation would embark on a new transition with a plan that suspended the nation's constitution, dissolved the elected legislature and called for fresh presidential and parliamentary elections. Morsi was replaced by head of the High Constitutional Court, Adly Mansour, who is serving as interim president.

Miles away from Nasr City in Tahrir Square, Morsi's opponents backed the army's decisions. They refuse to consider the army's actions a coup, claiming the military simply acted on the will of the people. More than a million people rose up since June 30 to demand Morsi resign and call for early elections.

"We're here to tell the world that our revolution is about the people, not the army," said Mona Youssef, who came to Tahrir Square on Sunday evening with her family.

As Youssef spoke, military planes flew in crisp formations over the square, putting on a coordinated show for those below. The planes trailed streams of black, red and white smoke for the colors of the Egyptian flag as demonstrators erupted in celebration.

Protesters here criticized the United States because they believe President Obama supports Morsi. One poster showed Obama's face crossed out with a giant red X that said: "Stop supporting terrorism."

"I like the American people," said Islam Mohammad, 22, who just graduated from college. "But American politics don't respect Egyptians."

As tension persists between opposing political camps, there is a risk of renewed violence. At least 36 people have died in clashes nationwide that started Friday. Some of the violence erupted in central Cairo after Morsi supporters demonstrated near anti-Morsi crowds, prompting the two sides to battle.

Mansour has called for the divisions to end and declared that his top priority is national reconciliation.

But there are other disputes, and political confusion. On Saturday night, Egyptian officials walked backed from earlier reports that opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei would be named the new interim prime minister.

Senior opposition official Munir Fakhry Abdelnur told the Associated Press that the hard-line Islamist Nour Party refused ElBaradei's appointment, resulting in the reversal.

The vice chairman of the Nour Party, Bassem El-Zaraka, told Egypt's Al-Hayat TV that ElBaradei's vision of a secular state does not match the Nour Party's vision, particularly when it comes to sharia law.

The rift underscores the lack of consensus among various political groups that is permeating a second transitional period in the past two years after Hosni Mubarak was overthrown in 2011. A group of ruling generals governed for more than 16 months until Morsi was elected president in June 2012.

"You have a very fragile democratic experience in Egypt," said Fawaz Gerges, director of the Middle East Center at the London School of Economics. "We are back to square one."